What in the world...

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Originally Posted by lillyorchid

Sadly Matt I don't have a snake that is big enough to eat her. Man does she have me mad!

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I sure do and Ruby would glady deal with her for you. lmao

Jake... Send Ruby over here so I can have her I MEAN so I can feed her this rat... *hint hint* ;)

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Originally Posted by lillyorchid

Jake... Send Ruby over here so I can have her I MEAN so I can feed her this rat... *hint hint* ;)

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Sure, I'll get right on it but shipping a 13.35 lb snake could be expensive lol

Deb & Joanna,

You two were both 100% right. Something is up with these babies! Last night I noticed one was "circling". She just kept walking / running in a tight circle around and around and around. When she tried to walk straight she seemed very off balance and "lost". This morning I found her dead. This evening I noticed another one was doing the circle thing too, so I just put her down. I think those other two must have died on their own and momma rat was just cleaning up. I assume something neurological is wrong with them.

Could it have been from you handling them? Maybe the momma got paranoid and killed them because they smelt like you?

At first I thought about that but now I HIGHLY doubt that. I do believe something is mentally wrong with them. As I posted post #14 right above you Justin.

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Originally Posted by lillyorchid

At first I thought about that but now I HIGHLY doubt that. I do believe something is mentally wrong with them. As I posted post #14 right above you Justin.

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Well I guess ruby was not guilty after all.

Have you use any chemicals near their enclosure (Bug spray...) that could have affect the babies in anyway?

lol Deb, Ruby is Jake's Boa that I wanted to feed the mother rat off too.

As for any chemicals or sprays, nothing has been used around them and I wash my hands before and after I handle any of them. I just read that rats can get inner ear infection's that cause head tilts, circling, inability to drink from a water bottle, and lethargy. Also as stated pituitary tumors also make rats do the same exact things just like an inner ear infection does. So I'm guessing they either had inner ear infections or pituitary tumors.... Strange and very sad. Momma rat is now going to be retired and the father agouti berkshire rex that I used I'll keep an eye on the babies he produces.

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Originally Posted by lillyorchid

lol Deb, Ruby is Jake's Boa that I wanted to feed the mother rat off too.

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I thought I was following that right. Glad you posted this so I didn't have to go back and re-read it.........lol.

Justin it's a pretty rare female rat that will destroy her young if they carry human scent. Mice can be pretty iffy that way but generally rats are fine with this as they are intelligent enough to connect human scent with being fed, watered, etc. I personally hand check each pinkie born here within 24 hours of it's birth (usually within 8 to 12 hours) to check for genetic problems and that they are nursing well and have never had a female reject her offspring because of this. With the mice I wouldn't touch their babies, they seem to eat their young if you look cross eyed at them...blech!

Sounds like you've found the problem Allison. Likely the female was simply cleaning up the corpses or if she did destroy her own young it was because she instinctively knew they were defective or dying anyways.